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Breast cancer: By the numbers

By Chicago Tribune, McClatchy Tribune

Posted:
10/07/2012 01:00:00 AM PDT

Here are some current statistics on breast cancer occurrence and survivorship, provided by the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society and recent studies published in major medical journals.

2,971,610

Number of female breast cancer survivors in the U.S. as of Jan. 1. By 2022, that number is expected to reach 3.78 million.

226,870

Estimated number of new cases in the U.S. of breast cancer in women in 2012. There will be an estimated 2,190 new cases of breast cancer in men.

$6.74 billion

What the U.S. spent on continuing care for female breast cancer patients in 2010. That's more than was spent on initial care for women with breast cancer in 2010 ($6.07 billion).

90 percent

Women with breast cancer who make it to the five-year survival mark. That's up from 63 percent in the 1960s.

82 percent

Women who make it to the 10-year survival mark.

77 percent

Women who make it to the 15-year survival mark. (This number reflects women who didn't have the benefit of recent screening and treatment strategies.)

54 percent

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Women who reach the five-year survival mark after becoming pregnant within six months of ending treatment. That number increased to 78 percent for those women who became pregnant between six months and two years after treatment.

1/3

Percentage of cancer deaths in the U.S. each year that are linked to poor diet and lack of physical activity, according to a study published in the January/February 2012 issue of CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.